Official credit cards used by British Council staff were also used to pay for haircuts, London Eye trips and to buy Lego.

The findings follow a Freedom of Information Act request by The TaxPayers’ Alliance about the Council – a Foreign Office offshoot set up to promote British culture abroad.

It discovered Council staff racked up nearly £2million on hotel bills, £407,496 on restaurants and over £1million on flights, between 2009 and 2011. Corporate credit cards were also used to pay for civil servants and their guests to stay at exclusive hotels around the world, including Dubai’s Park Hyatt.

Other spending included £4,844 on trips on the London Eye, £1,056 at a spa in Russia, £142 on a haircut, and £80 on the Yellow Duckmarine which runs tours on the Thames.

Credit cards were also used to pay for £479 at a Lego store, £300 at Primark and £272 on iTunes.

TaxPayers’ Alliance director Matthew Sinclair said: “Taxpayers will be worried that they are being asked to support British Council bureaucrats living the high life abroad while they have to tighten their belts at home.”

The British Council said: “We have clear policies about corporate card use and do not tolerate their misuse.”